Rouhani describes Islamic Revolution as foundation of national dignity

The 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran became the foundation of national identity and dignity, said Iranian President Hassan Rouhani at the closing ceremony of the 35th Iran National Book of the Year Award and the 25th Iran World Award for Book of the Year held on Wednesday at Tehran's Vahdat Hall.

"Pre-revolution era was the period when the Iranian nation had been snubbed by the arrogant powers," President Rouhani said.

"During the post-revolution era, the Iranian nation managed to get dignity and also flourish while keeping national sovereignty and respecting religious culture," said the president.

At Wednesday's ceremony, President Rouhani hailed the exemplary authors of the year.

Also present at the event were Iran's Culture Minister Abbas Salehi, his deputy for cultural affairs, Mohsen Javadi and a number of notable cultural figures.

Culture minister: Islamic Revolution born with books, writers

Salehi said at the gathering that the Islamic Revolution of Iran, like Islam, is intertwined with books and writers, as it is one of the few revolutions in the world whose leaders were all writers.

"Iran's Islamic Revolution was one of very few revolutions in the world the leaders of which, including Imam Khomeini, Ayatollah (Morteza) Motahari, Ayatollah (Mohammad Hosseini) Beheshti and the Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, were all authors," said Salehi.

The Islamic Revolution was born with the writers, as the streets of the cities during the revolution was replete with books, he said.

The Book of the Year Award is one of the greatest and the oldest book events in Iran. Iran's culture minister inaugurated 'The Book of the Year Award' in 1983, and 'Iran World Award for Book of the Year' in 1993, which were aimed at selecting nd introducing worthwhile international books, and honoring their authors, editors, and translators to elevate the general knowledge and culture, and developing public scholarship/readership with the Islamic and Iranian written heritage.

The winners received the President's Commemoration Plaque along with other valuable prizes.